May 5, 2010 8:42:42 AM

The College Sports Information Directors of America will honor former Pacific-10 Commissioner Tom Hansen with its 2010 Dick Enberg Award at its July convention.

The award honors Enberg's passion for and support of the CoSIDA Academic All-America program and his dedication to education.

Hansen retired last summer after 26 years as Pac-10 commissioner. His career also included seven years as public relations director for the Pac-10 and 16 years at the NCAA national office. He is the 14th recipient of the Enberg Award.

"Tom Hansen's long and distinguished career in college athletics has positively influenced a variety of people, none more so than the many student-athletes whose experiences he made better through his leadership," said Justin Doherty, assistant athletics director at Wisconsin and CoSIDA president. "The list of past Dick Enberg Award winners reads like a ‘who's who' of college athletics, and Tom Hansen's name certainly adds to the prestige of that select group."

Hansen, who was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame earlier this year, said he was honored to receive an award bearing Enberg's name because of his support for the values of college athletics.

"College athletics is an important element of the university, for its students, alumni and friends, but it must maintain an appropriate relationship to the institution's academic mission," Hansen said. "The Enberg Award reminds us of the primacy of education in that mission and salutes the academic achievements of student-athletes."

Hansen joins Donna Shalala, Alan Page, Gerald R. Ford, Dean Smith, Ted Leland, Pat Summitt and Theodore Hesburgh among winners of the Enberg Award.

Read a profile of Hansen in Champion magazine.